Yampa Valley Housing Authority urges potential Cottonwoods buyers to prepare now

Yampa Valley Housing Authority/Courtesy photo
As the ground floor of The Cottonwoods for-purchase condo complex arises during current construction, officials at Yampa Valley Housing Authority are encouraging potential buyers to start purchase preparation work now.
Efforts to repair or boost a questionable credit rating may require four to six months, according to the nonprofit housing authority, so that is the first step in the buying process that should start now. The first phase of deed-restricted The Cottonwoods, located at 1648 Mid Valley Drive in Steamboat Springs, next door to UCHealth Urgent Care, is scheduled for completion by year-end. The first phase will include 86 one-, two- and three-bedroom condos for purchase with condo prices from the low $400,000s to the high $600,000s.
The housing authority notes the condos are “reserved exclusively” for eligible members of the Routt County workforce or retirees.
To qualify for The Cottonwoods application process, individuals or households must meet key criteria related to employment, income and sole residency. Applicants must work for or be retired from an employer physically located in Routt County. They must also prove they intend to live in the condo full time, and no short-term rentals are allowed. Buyers cannot own another home, condo or mobile home unless that home is sold within 180 days.
Applicants must earn 100% to 140% of the Area Median Income range as currently assessed. In 2024, that income level was $83,400 to $116,760 for individuals and $119,100 to $166,740 for a household of four.
Alyssa Cartmill, the housing authority’s regional property and asset manager, explained that buying a condo from the nonprofit organization is different than a typical market-rate buying experience.
“Housing authorities usually use tools like deed restrictions to ensure the long-term affordability of homes for present and future homeowners,” Cartmill said. “The deed restriction for The Cottonwoods was developed by a combination of lessons from past deed restrictions, research from other mountain towns and a local blue-ribbon panel of experts.”
In a timeline map, housing authority officials are urging potential buyers to check their credit, know their buying power, connect with a lender and structure their budget during January through March. Officials urge buyers to fully understand the deed restrictions set up for The Cottonwoods, take a homebuying course and review the housing lottery procedures closely in February and March.

To help in the process, the housing authority is collaborating with nonprofit United Way of the Yampa Valley to offer a free, three-evening Credit Class Series starting 6-7:30 p.m. Jan. 28 taught by instructor and local lender Kathryn Pedersen.
Class registration is available at UnitedWayoftheYampaValley.org.
The deed restriction application and qualification process is scheduled for release in May and will extend to July, followed by a lottery drawing and results performed from August to September. Selected households will purchase the units from December 2025 through March 2026, according to the timeline.
Officials are encouraging interested buyers to complete a pre-screening application at YVHA.org and to sign up for the YVHA newsletter to stay informed. Cartmill said the pre-screening application was posted online in late December, and so far, 65 parties have expressed interest.
Cartmill said The Cottonwoods is the second Steamboat Springs housing authority condo complex, following Fox Creek on Hilltop Parkway, which has 30 units and was completed in 2006.
Full details on The Cottonwoods qualification and application process, along with a frequently-asked questions page, can be found online at YVHA.org.
To reach Suzie Romig, call 970-871-4205 or email sromig@SteamboatPilot.com.

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